The present invention relates to personal video recorder (PVR) systems and, more particularly, to PVR systems that include user television equipment having an interactive television program guide (IPG) with PVR extensions implemented thereon.
Products have recently been developed that allow users to manage their viewing experiences and record media with increased flexibility. PVRs, such as those provided by TiVo™ and ReplayTV™, record programs on hard-disk drives configured for multi-media storage. Users may schedule programs to be recorded and may play back the recorded programs at a later time. These products also record what users are watching in real-time, allowing users to pause real-time programs when, for example, the user must leave the room. The product may continue recording and storing the program being broadcast while the displayed program is paused. Users may resume their viewing where they left off, and may fast forward through commercials until they reach the point at which the program is currently being provided.
Interactive television applications, such as IPGs, are now widely available to the general public. IPGs may be used to provide interactive television services. Interactive television services include services for allowing a user to tune to a program, set parental locks, record a program, set reminders, etc.
IPGs may allow users to record programs on digital or analog storage devices (e.g., videocassettes, hard disks, floppy discs, flash memory, recordable compact discs (CDs), and recordable digital versatile discs (DVDs)). Programs may also be recorded on a program guide server, Internet server, or other server. The program guide server may be located at, for example, the cable system headend. The program guide may be an on-line program guide, which may be implemented using a web server on the Internet.
However, in most cases, the IPGs that facilitate television viewing remain separate from the applications that offer PVR functionality. For example, PVRs may include IPGs that are separate from the IPGs provided by other user equipment (e.g., a set-top box) and may require input devices and graphic interfaces separate from those used with existing IPGs. Subsequently, users often experience difficulty integrating existing IPGs with video recording applications.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an interactive television system having PVR functionality in which the user may use an IPG seamlessly with PVR functionality.